Brad Paisley Releases Song Written By Disabled Friend for Charity

Brad Paisley has recorded and released a new song called ‘Hard Life,’ which was penned by his friend, 23-year-old Joe Kindregan. Kindregan suffers from A-T (ataxia-telangiectasia), which is a rare, fatal and genetic disease where symptoms of disorders like cystic fibrosis, muscular dystrophy, immune deficiencies and cancer are manifested.

The song, which is available for purchase here and via other digital platforms, is part of a special initiative for the non-profit dubbed A-T Children’s Project. The project will receive all of Paisley’s digital royalties for the song for a year.

In a statement, Paisley said, “I’ve known Joe for several years and he is one of my favorite people. His disease is physically debilitating but obviously creatively and mentally Joe has such tremendous depth. It’s an honor for me to be the person to give voice to his creativity and cause.”

Here’s a little back story on how this collaboration came to be: Paisley met Kindregan at a fundraising event way back in 2005. One of Kindregan’s music-loving friends, also afflicted with A-T, convinced Joe to join him onstage and sing with Brad. A friendship between Kindregan and Paisley ensued. When Joe’s friend died of A-T, he decided to put their story of physical struggle into a song, with encouragement from Paisley.

Kindregan knew he wanted to crystallize life with A-T, both good and bad, in the form of a song. He showed the words to Paisley, who was struck by them, and knew they had something important. Kindregan visited Paisley’s Nashville studio twice to be a part of the process and finished product. Now, it’s available for all of Paisley’s fans to enjoy while educating themselves about this disease.